Roat Osha is very modern and clean inside and looks very nice – actually it looks more “nice” than it does “Asian”, but that’s totally unimportant to the story. We asked for a seat out on the patio since it was really nice outside. Super friendly host and subsequent waiter really got things rolling nicely. There were a couple happy hour specials, but none of them were really what I wanted, despite 2009 being the year of happy hour. (Happy hour isn’t the same without Gerd, I’m sorry. It just isn’t even close.) But they did have a significant girly drink menu and some decent wine as well. That being said, I stuck with water.
I ordered us some fresh spring rolls or maybe salad rolls or whatever they call them here. Rice paper skins wrapped around veggies and shrimp. These were quite tasty and came with a hoissin sauce and plum sauce maybe? I can’t tell. They both had peanuts on the top of the sauces, so it was hard to tell which one I was eating. They were both good though. I don’t think EyeHeartPizza had ever tried these kind of things before, so she was a tad unsure of them – but that didn’t stop her from putting back two of the four they brought us - before I could get my camera out.
I found a handful of things on the menu I wanted to try, but I finally decided on the Glass Noodle Stir Fry – Spice level 3 (middle of the 5 point scale). Of course Pad Thai is always an option, as is the Rad Na, but since EyeHeartPizza got the Pad See Ew (which was my second choice), I figured she’d not eat all hers and I’d get it anyway.
The food came out in a reasonable time, maybe even quick, but it was just after 5, so it wasn’t busy yet. My glass noodles looked delicious, although there was a mound of parsley piled on the top (weird). So once I pushed the green mountain aside, I was very impressed with this food.
There were plenty of chicken pieces in it and the glass noodles were super soft and tasty. And I’m happy to say that I should have gone with the spice level 4 on this. The only downside to this dish was the serious amount of onions they included. I’m not a fan of onions in the first place, but generally I can power through them in Asian food, especially since I like the flavor (I’m a texture guy). But this was overkill. Unless you’re a vegetarian/vegan, onions should be used for flavoring, not for substance (I’m not a chef though, so that’s just my personal stance). I left a massive amount of onions on the plate when I finished it.
As assumed, EyeHeartPizza got all nancy on me and only ate about half of her Pad See Ew, plus she thought the level 3 spice was too hot for her. So we swapped plates and I finished her meal. Actually, her’s might have been a wee bit better, but they were both really good. Thankfully, I took a photo of hers as well since she didn’t want to feel left out of the food photo shoot.
While this place isn’t going to be my favorite Thai place, it’s good and I’ll eat here again, I’m sure of it. Try it out and see what you think.
Top 5 things about Roat Osha
1. Pad See Ew
2. Glass Noodle Stir Fry
3. Salad Rolls
4. Really nicely decorated
5. Staff were really nice
Bottom 5 things
1. Gerd wanted to try every Thai restaurant in the Twin Cities and we never made it to this one
2. Too many onions
3. Sitting outside next to Hennepin at the tail end of rush hour gets really loud
4. I should have gotten at least a 4 on the spice level
5. No dew, only Coke
1 comment:
Actually, I DON'T care what you think. Anyone who doesn't understand how onions are used in Thai cooking and who can't tell the difference between parsley and cilantro has no business reviewing food.
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